A Touch of Ink

What does a prudish, nerdy college grad have in common with a group of tattoo artists? Absolutely nothing. However, what if the owner of the tattoo salon had something more in common with the nerdy grad? Want to know what it is? Then find out in this gay erotic romantic short story as two unlikely people from completely different backgrounds come to understand the meaning of love among an industry of body art.

Submitted:Jul 18, 2011
Reads: 1,190
Comments: 4
Likes: 4

"FUCK OFF SHANE! I QUIT!" screamed
Terry.

Terry Raines clenched his fists
tightly to face his boss Shane Axel. Sure at 5'8, 150 pounds, the
dark haired, brown eyed Terry could get his ass beat by the
hulking brute towering over him. He figured he would take his
chances.

Terry knew 36 year old Shane
better than the employees that worked for him. Not even Shane's
sister Greta had an inkling. Despite the aggressive demeanor of
this 6'2, buzzed cut, sandy blond haired, blue eyed giant covered
in body art, Shane had an angelic soul. Terry knew this. He just
needed to appeal to his employer's common sense. Like David
facing Goliath, he stared his opponent in the eye.

"You're being an asshole Shane!"
he spat. "You just won't admit it!"

A wave of applause
broke out in the shop of Underground Ink. Both patrons and
workers clapped in agreement in reference to Shane's unreasonable
conduct. Many of whom have witnessed the owner's erratic behavior
firsthand. Others had been at the brunt of it. Either way
everyone was supporting the underdog in this battle. They had
Terry's back.

"Give him hell Terry! About time
someone had the balls to call my brother an asshole!" whooped
Greta.

Distracted by the argument, she
almost forgot about the client she had been inking. A light tap
to her arm made her aware that she needed to finish the tattoo on
his back. The 33 year old green haired, facially pierced ink
artist finally got the hint dragging the vibrating needle down
the customer's flesh. She hated missing out on all the
drama.

"Hold your horses bud, it's not
she's gonna break up with you after tatting her name on your
skin."

Greta winked to Terry
acknowledging the personal hidden joke. Usually the percentage
rate of couples breaking up increases dramatically once their
significant others' name is tattooed on their body. Terry
immediately felt sorry for the poor customer on Greta's ink
bed.

"Leave her alone Shane!"
interrupted Terry. "She's one of the best tattoo artists you've
got! Her list of celeb clients alone bring in money to this
place! Do you want to lose business because of your stupid,
fucking pride?"

"FUCK ALL OF YOU THEN!" shrieked
Shane. "HEY COLLEGE BOY! IF YOU THINK YOU CAN RUN MY SHOP BETTER
THAN ME, THEN FUCKING GO RIGHT AHEAD!"

"Shane, what the fuck?" said
Terry. "You just can't walk out on your business. You got clients
booked all day!"

The rest of the tattooists of
Underground Ink remained speechless. They could not believe their
eyes. For the first time in ten years since the shop opened,
their boss and owner Shane Axel had completely quit his business.
As the artists looked at each other befuddled, Terry finally
spoke up.

"Not to worry people," he
reassured the crew. "Shane in his normal fashion is blowing off
steam. He'll calm down and come back to the office. Right now I'm
still your manager and I'm still in charge. It's business as
usual. Let's just get through the day."

And they did.

Later that
evening.

11:00 pm. rolled around with Terry
sending everyone home. Greta remained to kindly help him close up
shop. After totaling up the day's figures, they congratulated one
another on turning a profit. Even with the earlier outbursts that
occurred at Underground Ink, it did not affect the company's
sales for the day. At least Shane could be grateful for that.
Shane began cleaning the machines while Greta swept. Both
remained silent. The suspense was killing her. She had to say
something.

"Terry what was the real deal that
happened earlier?" she asked him. "I've never seen my brother so
upset."

"Oh that's just Shane being
Shane," he replied.

"Get off it Terry," she prodded.
"There's more to story that you're not telling me. We're all
friends here. Level with me. What is going on?"

The question threw Terry off. He
was not prepared for it. Hoping to avert issue, he ignored her
wiping away any of the ink residue off the machines. Still, Greta
Axel would not be discouraged. She continued her
interrogation.

"Terry, I've known you for four
years." Greta grinned. "I remember when you were some 21 year old
fresh faced college kid who was going to graduate school. You
needed a job and applied here to be the manager of Underground
Ink."

"How could I forget," he
responded. He glanced at her giving her a great, big smile. "You
guys didn't make it easy for me. I stuck out like a sore thumb.
Here I am. This nerdy, prudish kid from business school wearing a
three piece suit trying to get a job at a tattoo parlor
surrounded by people who looked they got out of prison."

"Oh that brings back memories,"
she laughed. "The crew and I had a pool going of how long you
were going to last. Personally, I had you in for thirty minutes.
Damn Terry, you owe me a new pair of Doc Martens!"

"Send me the bill Greta," he
teased. "Yeah, you guys gave me a hard time but Shane saw through
all that. He never gave up on me."

"And eventually you became part of
the team," Greta added. "Who knew that some regular guy off that
knew nothing about tattooing would make Underground Ink the
success it is today? This leads me to my next question. What was
the fight between you and Shane about?"

"You are not going to let up?"
Terry sighed. "The truth is I'm considering a job offer for a
marketing position with big time ad agency in New York City.
Shane found out about it and blew his lid."

"You not seriously going to take
it are you?" she asked.

"I don't know Greta," he
responded. "It's a lucrative offer with a high salary. Plus, it
is what I went to school for. Besides, there is really nothing
keeping me here."

Terry looked up at her with
surprise. Did she know? Of course, she did.

"Don't try to play dumb with me
Terry Raines!" she told him. "Like I didn't know that you and my
brother were fucking each other, just come out of the closet
already! Nobody cares!"

"For your information Miss
Know-It-All I've been out of the closet since I was seventeen,"
he corrected. "It's your brother that doesn't know where we stand
or what he wants. You know as I do, he's not big on sharing his
feelings. I deserve better than just a relationship based on sex.
I can't wait around for someone who is still deciding on being
who he is or what he wants."

Greta took a minute to breathe.
"Terry, you need to know something about me and my brother Shane.
We grew up in Utah in a small, religious Mormon town where our
father was the church pastor. After Shane came out to him our
father threw him out of the house."

"Why didn't he tell me any of
this?"

"My brother tends to bottle up his
feelings. I'm not a shrink but I'm guessing he presents this
tough guy exterior to mask the truly, broken person
underneath."

"I guess that explains alot why he
won't connect with me."

"Maybe but I've noticed a change
in him," she noted. "Anyway, Shane somehow made his way to Los
Angeles and started up Underground Ink. I eventually followed him
here and the rest is history."

"And you're telling me this
because?"

"I'm telling you this because
you've somehow broken through his barriers. I don't know how you
did it but it you managed to get through to him. You're special
Terry Raines. You just don't know it."

"Oh come on," chuckled Terry. "I'm
just some nerd with the good business sense and organizational
skills to help pull this struggling business out of a
hole."

Greta giggled. "Yeah but you're
the nerd who gave us a much needed kick in the ass. You helped
turned Underground Ink around these four years to become the
success that it is today. Plus, you got Shane to smile. My
brother never smiles!"

"I think that is the acridine dye
from the tattoo ink that is making him euphoric," smirked
Terry.

"Personally I prefer the naphthol
derivatives," she teased. "You get both a stimulant and
depressant out of it. It's like Red Bull and vodka. It gives you
wings!"

The 200 lb muscular Neanderthal
did not look happy. Greta made a quick getaway before any other
drama played out. Though she secretly wished, she had a front row
seat. The door slammed after Greta left. Shane locked the door,
drew the blinds, all remaining silent while he stared at Terry. A
minute passed and not even a grunt from Shane, Terry became
annoyed so he made himself comfortable on the seat of the
reception area of the shop.

"Okay Shane, let's have it out
right here since no one is watching," he told him. "You know you
have a problem with me accepting that job in New York so you
might as well come out as say it!"

"I wanted to say I'm sorry,"
answered Shane. "I was being an ass. Look you're the best manager
this company has ever had. I panicked a little. New York is a
good opportunity for you. I can't hold you back. It was selfish
of me so I'm apologizing. I want to make it up to you."

Shane said nothing more as he
entered his office, returning with a large envelope carrying a
wad of bills, and handed it to Terry. Terry flipped through the
currency amazed at Shane's generosity.

"This should be the last of your
pay for the rest of the week plus a little extra as a bonus,"
Shane explained. "I'll take care of the rest your shifts until I
can find a replacement for you since you need time to pack." He
turned his back on Terry to return to his office.

Surprised by his abruptness, Terry
followed.

"Shane thank you," said Terry.
"This is quite…um generous."

"You're welcome," replied Shane;
his back still facing him. "You've earned it. Is there anything
else?"

Nervously, Terry thought for a
minute. "Yes, there is."

"What?"

"Shane, I want…I want…a
tattoo!"

Shane's eyes widened in surprise.
"Terry, are you sure? You know ink is permanent. Tattoos stay
with you forever. Are you still sure about this?"

"Positive," said Terry. "You know
I've always been the goody goody here. I'm the only employee of
yours who refusing to have any body art done to him. It'll be
like a memento of my time here at Underground Ink. I want you to
do it Shane. I'll even pay you for it!"

"No Terry, you've done enough for
me," reassured Shane. "It's on the house. Which one were you
thinking and where you want it done?"

"A row of interlocking hearts but
none of that cartoon shit. You can do some cool, tribal design on
my back going down my spine to the curve of my ass," he said with
conviction.

"Terry!" exclaimed Shane. "That
area is really sensitive to pain. I don't think you can handle
it."

"That is why I am requesting you
to do my tattoo," said Terry. "You'll be gentle. They're will be
less pain involved."

"Fine," griped Shane. "Get
yourself ready!"

Terry laid himself face down on
the ink bed. He stripped himself completely naked. He did not
mind since he had been intimate with Shane before. His boss had
seen him clothe less during their time together. His heart beat
rapidly as he heard the vibrating noise of Shane preparing the
tattoo needle.

"Just relax Terry," whispered
Shane in his ear. "I'm going to try to make this as comfortable
for you as possible." A sanitized cloth fell across his shoulder
and back as he felt Shane's rubber glove massage the back of his
flesh. He could hear the closeness of the needle as his body
tensed. He could sense it come closer to his skin. Then
silence.

"Because I don't have feelings for
them!" confessed Shane. "I only care about you!"

"You don't want me to go, do you
Shane?"

A tear welled up in Shane's eye.
"No it hurts too much inside. Terry, I can't promise you anything
or give you what you need but believe me when I say that I don't
want to lose you!"

"I believe you Shane," replied
Terry. "Now Shane, why don't you come over here and show me how
much you need me? I want more than just fucking Shane. I want to
be connected to the man hidden inside you. All of you."

"Let's see if I can oblige my
client on this one," teased Shane. He kicked off his shoes,
socks, pants, and shirt just to lie next to Terry. Their mouths
met as their tongues wrapped each other in their moist warmness.
Arms interlocked, Terry's hands pressed into Shane's back as he
massaged the intricate lines of ink that crisscrossed his lover's
spine. Shane moved his mouth to caress Terry's neck as he heard
him gasp just as a nibble was felt on the nape of Terry's
shoulder and Adam's apple.

Both men knelt down in front of
one another as Shane took Terry's hand guiding him down the lines
of his incredible body art. Each ripple of his finger stroked,
massaged and rubbed against the ink covering and concealing every
concave of Shane's well developed chest and erected nipples.
Terry kissed each dark trace of ink finding the small bumps
around Shane's areolas playfully sucking each nub before lowering
his tongue down the deep grooves of his six pack abdomen, navel,
and finally the nest of curls where Shane was standing at full
attention.

Cupping one hand around his sack,
Terry stroked Shane slowly listening to him moan as he playfully
caressed each round orb into his mouth as Shane tried to hold
back his pleasure. A small emission of pre-ejaculate released
giving Terry the next cue to cover his mouth on Shane's massive
shaft tasting the saltiness of his seed and swallowing him whole.
Terry lifted and lowered his head in rhythm as Shane happily
obliged him by bucking his hips in the same melody as Terry
played an erotic tune with his enormous girth.

Pleased with his lover's attention
to detail, Shane withdrew from Terry's mouth and scrambled to the
drawer counter's looking for something.

"Lube and condoms fifth drawer on
your right," smiled Terry as he watched his lover rapidly grab
the accoutrements of their love making.

"Thanks," grinned a wicked Shane
as he ripped the condom package spread on the lube. Squirting the
transparent substance on his middle finger, he teased Terry's
opening with the tip of his finger before slowly inserting a
moist finger within him. Terry marveled at his tightness as his
felt another of Shane's finger spreading him gently. Letting a
soft moan, he unexpectedly grabbed Shane's wrist as prepared for
the final phase of their consummation.

"Terry, I don't want to be so
rough with you this time," explained Shane. "Am I hurting
you?"

"Shane, it's okay," purred Terry.
"You're not."

Shane released his fingers from
Terry, spreading his thighs wide and laying his legs across his
shoulders. Finding that sacred place, he slowly entered Terry's
masculine folds. The tightness engulfed him as he felt pressure
of his shaft being pleasured by Terry's holy spot. Terry moaned
in agreement in response to Shane plunging himself deep inside
him causing him to curl his toes with each sensation. Both men
grunted and groaned as the echoes of flesh colliding filled the
room with an erotic atmosphere of sexual deviancy.

The rhythm continued and
progressed as Terry and Shane looked at each other and smiled.
Shane could not contain himself how beautiful his lover was and
could not hold back any longer. Erupting in a gusher of
masculinity, he climaxed filling his condom laced shaft with
enough seed to rebuild the planet's population. Terry did the
same as he stroked his own shaft and emptied his own seed on to
Shane's thigh. Both men embraced once again as they let their
lips and tongues intertwine to finalize their lovemaking bliss
before drifting off to sleep.

Terry awoke the next morning still
on the ink table as felt a tickle across his back. A strange
aroma filled his nostrils as he stared at his lover holding a
paint brush and a jar of red ink in his hand. Terry stared in the
mirror and could see what appeared to be some intricate tribal
lines that resemble interlocking hearts falling down his
back.

"Shane, what are you doing?"
giggled Terry.

"I'm finishing up the tattoo like
you requested," said Shane. "Temporary, of course. Henna ink. No
pain and it washes off in a few days. I have to mark what is
mine."

"Absolutely babe," smiled Shane.
"I'm officially out of the closet. I'm sure we can work out the
long distance thing if you take that job in New York."

"Shane, I'm not taking the job!"
replied Terry. "I'm game to stay here and make this work if you
are! Besides Underground Ink needs me especially when we have a
temperamental owner and some employees who need some shaping
up!"

"Absolutely babe," answered Shane.
"Whatever you want? But you do know you'll be working some
late…long…hard... nights with the boss, right?"

"It would be my pleasure to do
make sure the job is done right," purred Terry. "I love you
Shane."

"I love you Terry."

They proved it to one another by
sharing another passionate kiss. However, that quickly got
interrupted when Greta walked in.

"Well it's about fucking time!"
she said. "So does that mean you guys are going to the whole gay
marriage thing and adopt some kids from Africa?"